IUCN Red List Training Course Now Online

13 September 2013 | News story

The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™ is widely recognized as the most comprehensive, objective global approach for evaluating the conservation status of plant and animal species. The IUCN Red List has grown in size and complexity and now plays an increasingly prominent role in guiding international, regional and national conservation. Prompted by the Red List’s increasing popularity and a growing need for Red List training around the world, IUCN in collaboration with The Nature Conservancy (TNC) has developed the first online IUCN Red List Training Course.

Hosted on TNC’s ConservationTraining website, the online course “Assessing Species' Extinction Risk Using IUCN Red List Methodology” will be of particular benefit to species conservation scientists about to embark on Red List assessment projects. However, the course is free and open to anyone who wishes to learn more about the IUCN Red List.

In this course, you can learn about the IUCN Red List assessment process and how to prepare high-quality Red List assessments. All of the topics covered in a typical IUCN Red List Assessor Training workshop are included, with some additional lessons that allow the learner to explore some aspects of the Red List Categories and Criteria in more detail.

To benefit most from the course, it is recommended that new learners start with Module 1 and work through the course. For more experienced ‘Red-listers’ needing a refresher on a particular topic, modules can be selected as required. Currently, there are four modules available; Introduction to the IUCN Red List, IUCN Red List Assessments, IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria, and Supporting Information for IUCN Red List Assessments.

A further three modules will be released in the next few weeks, and later this year the IUCN Red List Assessor Exam will also be available on the TNC website. This final exam will test your understanding of the IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria and the Red List assessment process. On successful completion of each module, the course will award you a “Record of Completion” certificate; passing the final exam will result in a "Red List Assessor" certificate.

Completion of the course is not mandatory for those people submitting assessments for the IUCN Red List; it is simply an easy to use platform for anybody to improve and test their Red List knowledge and skills.

What are you waiting for? Become a Red List expert today!

For more information on the online training course or Red List training in general, please contact: